Combined piano and phonograph.



C. S. BURTON.

COMBINED'PIANO AND PHONOGRAPH.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-3. 1917.

Patented' Apr. 15, 1919.

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Patented Apr. 15,1919.

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APPLICATION FILED Auma. 1917.

COMBINED PIANO AND PHONOGAPH.

UNITED STATES .PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES S. BURTON, OF OAK PARK, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO MELVILLE CLARK PIANO COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

COMBINED PIANO AND PHONOGRAPH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 15, 1919.

Original application filed January 29, 1917, Serial No. 145,037. Divided and this application led August 3, 1917. Serial No. 184,203.

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, CHARLES S. BURTON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oak Park, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Combined Pianos and Phonographs, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

This application is a division of my application Serial No. 145,037, filed January Q9, 1917.

The purpose of this invention is to provide an improved construction of a phonograph combined with a piano and contained within the casing thereof, and of the piano casing adapting it for suoli combination.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view of a piano embodying this invention.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the phonograph mechanism contained in the piano case, showing certain parts of the piano case and mechanism for t e purpose of indicating the relative location of the phonograph in the case.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section at the line, 3 3, on lug. 2.

The specific purpose of the construction shown in the drawing is sto adapt a phonograph mechanism to be mounted in a piano case, and construct a piano case so that it may be so mounted, with the record carrier and the record thereon, positioned within the space which is usually available in front of the hammer action, instead of as has heretofore been generally considered necessary, in such position that the record carrier and record stand in the Wider space available within the case above the hammer action. For the purpose of so positioning the record carrier and record, the mechanism is designed and constructed to have the record carrier in an edgewise upstanding position, presenting the face of the record to the view of the listener standing in front of the piano.

The general construction' of the phonograph mechanism and the means for rotating the record is not herein claimed and is designed to be illustrated and described here only so far as necessarv to present the particular features which are modified from the usual construction in order to accomplish the purpose of the present invention.

The drawings show a piano case, 1, containing an automatic player action which is indicated by the tracker box, 2, with a tracker, 3, and with nete sheet carrying rolls, i and 5, therein. The roll operating mechanism is indicated by the o utline of the frame thereof, shown at G, at the right hand end of the tracker box. A shaft, 7, extending behind the tracker box is to be understood as connected with the train of the roll operating mechanism. This shaft communicates power for actuating the record carrier of the phonograph mechanism which is carried in the space available in the piano case at the left hand end of the tracker box of the automatic piano playing mechanism, and in front of the hammer action of the piano indicated by the -hammer rest rail, 9, and hammers, 10, shown in the customary position with respect to the other parts mentioned of the automatic or player piano. The feature which distinguishes the present invention is the location of the record carrier, 12, of the phonograph in an edgewise upstanding position .so as to expose the record thereon, facing forward, through the ai Prture, 14, for-med in the front of the piano case for giving access to the phonograph. lia is a door for closing this opening, conveniently hinged at its lower edge for swinging forward to open, and provided with means for holding it horizontal at open position so that it constitutes a shelf upon which the records may be temporarily lodged when changing the records on the record carrier. This door is rendered ornamental by a symmetrically situated forward swell, 14h, which serves the mechanical purpose of accommodating the sound box of the phonograph in the cavity which results at the inner side from making the swell at the outer side. For mounting the record carrier in the upstanding position described and supporting the carrier operating mechanism, a frame, 15, is provided mounted upon the foundation board, l, (though this particular method of supporting it is not essential). The power communicating shaft, 7, extending behind the tracker box from the note-sheet-operatin motor train situated at the opposite end o the tracker box obtains bearing in this frame, 15, and carries upon V,isaidi swivel axis, andgthereforeatfeveryother positiontheretwillbe a lateral rpressure `of itsileft hand end a disk,r16, which `rotates "Y in trictional engagement with a 'friction pulley, 17, on the shaft, 18, also journaled in said frame, 15, and having the record carrier tablet, 12, mounted upon its forward upper end, said sliatft,r18, :being ,journaled in horizontal position in said frame, 15, extending therein fore-and-aft as clearly seen 1nA Fig. Y3. YThe drawings show means for `modifying the speed of rotation ofthe rec- A :horn or ampliier,21, may be mounted ixedly lin position by the horn bracket, 22, to which said 'horn or amplitier'is secured at its smaller end, and the tone arm, 31, is pivoted to said smaller end of the lhorn or amplifier by a swivel joint as -seen at 19, Y

Fig. By locating 'the record carrier in upiightgposition Jfor playing, as described, there is rendered available for the horn or amplifier, 21, an adequate space behind the upper tpart of said record carrier; and usuallytli'is position will be .found to `be above the hammer action, as seen in Fig. 3. The depth from 'front to rear of the space thus Vmade available ,permits making kthe ,ampliier of adequate dimensions while lit is still contained wholly within the case. "Vhen thus located the horn or amplifier is preferably -made with its .discharge mouth open- Y ing upwardly, which gives good opportunity -for discharge of the sound by swing-Y ing-up `the piano jtop board in the usual ,manner for V:tree discharge of sound from the gpiano Vits/elf.' Y

' Upon considering the relation ofthe tone arm and sound box to tlie'upstandiiig :record which results from making the recordcar-V rier upstand-iiig as described, it will be seen that when 'the tone arm is pivotedto the Y smaller endi ofV the Vhorn mounted bythe bracket, 22 in proper position to cause Vthe sound box stylus to move across 'the record :ina directionV substantially radial thereto,

as it'shouldfor':proper reproduction 'at all points of its path, lthe center of gravity of the' tone' arm and sound box, thatV is, of the structurev which Yis Vmounted for pivotal movement abouttheaxis offthefsw-ivel joint of thelelbowgto the smaller Aend of the'liorn or amplifier, Ywillitend to assume aposition in Vthe vertical 'fore-andealt plane through fthe YVstylusinffthe :groove of the record, due

VV`to gravity. Since this llateral pressure will vary atY all positions in theV swing ot the Y soundfbox and stylus over the record, it will tend .to vary thefreproduction of the record at different parts, and will also tend to Wear the -gifoove on -o'ne side or the other, that is,

To prevent these results it is necessary that a counter-balance shouldbe provided for the tone arm and sound box which cannot be provided in the manner which would be most obvious, namely, by

having a weighted extension of the -tone arm at the directly opposite side of its tulcrumV from sound box, because the *piano case does not ail'ord space'for accommodating a counter-balance iii-that position, and it is necessary to ind other means "for counterbalancing which'can "be accommodated within the space available. For this purpose there is Vprovided a weighted arm, 40, pivoted 4at any V-convenient position where it can be accommodated Vand connected by a link, 41, 'with the tone arm, the pivotal connections of the link to the tone arm and to Y'the Vcounterba'laiice arm Vbeingl at equal distances from'ftlierpivots about which said counter-balance -arm and tone arm respectively swing, so as to give the weight, 42, an-angular movement about the tulcrum of said arm, 40, equal to that of the toneparm about aits ulcrum inthe horn bracket, andV iii an arc reciprocally situated with respect to the arc through whichY said sound box, (or tor-be more exact, Vthe center of gravity oit the tone arm and its load, namely, the

sound box)V moves in traversing vthe record*Y "In view offthe upstanding positionof the record, the sound box stylus' will not be V adequately held to the zrecord by gravity;

and the Lnecessary"pressure is provided yby a spring, 45, stretched -froni a point on the tone-arm member,'30, which is oliset toward the plane of the record from fthe'pivot ofl sound box -is withdrawn from the vrecord a certain distance, the line of tension of :the springpasses pivot axis Vof the arm, 30,1to `the arm, 31, andthe spring `will then vreact 'to ywitlidrawthe sound boxjfioml the record instead-of holding it toward :the record, and

will'V sustain'fit in a vconvenient position :for

inserting Vand removingthe stylus Yand in-Y troducing a record behind the tone arm on the 'record carrier.VV A ,Y To prevent'therecord from accidentally iio c escaping L'from the center pin of the record Y Y carrierland to cause the record fito be lodged against Ythe VVrecord carrier Vwith suliicient certainty to insure the Ktrictional engage- Vment between 'the two by which the record isV VisoY carried with the record carrier, said centerpin is split and the split ends are spread apart and made elastic so that they may be closed together to admit the record onto the pin, which4 spreading again elastically prevents the escape of the record.

I claim 1. In combination with an upright piano comprising a record carrier tablet mounted for rotation in playing within the piano case about a fore-and-aft extending axis, said carrier having its entire extent and path of rotation in the space forward of the vertical plane of the hammer action; said phonograph comprising an amplifier located behind the plane in which the carrier is rotated about said axis and behind the upper part of said carrier.

2. In the construction defined in claim l foregoing, the smaller end of the amplifier being extended out laterally with respect to the amplifier, and also laterally with respect to the carrier from behind the latter past the edge thereof, so as to open forwardly at a point laterally beyond the range of the carrier, the tone arm being pivoted to said smaller forwardly-opening end, said tone arm extending thence in front of the record carrier, transversely of the axis of the carrier.

3. In the construction dened in claim 2 foregoing, said smaller and forwardly open end of the amplifier being at a level approximating the level of the upper edge of the carrier, and thereby relatively remotely above the level of the fore-and-aft axis of the carrier, the tone arm being pendant from said end of the amplifier in a transverse vertical plane in front of the plane of rotation of the carrier.

- e. In the construction defined in claim l, the amplifier having the axis of its widening portion from the axis of the pivot of the tone arm thereto to the mouth, curved in a vertical plane substantially parallel to the plane of the carriers rotation behind the latter having its sound-discharge mouth opening upwardly.

5. In combination with an upright piano, a phonograph having its record carrier in the form of a tablet for carrying a fiat or disk type of record, the same being mounted and contained within the piano case with said carrier at playing position occupying a space forward of the vertical plane of the hammer action, the amplifier having its smaller end for connection with the sound arm located laterally adjacent to the upper part of the record carrier, the tone arm pivotally suspended from said smaller end of the amplifier, and swinging in front of the record carrier for cooperation with the record carried thereon, to an arc whose chord steeply inclined, and a counterbalance for said pendant tone arm and the sound box thereon comprising a weighted lever arm fulcrumed and positioned for oscillating in the space behind the upper part of the record carrier, and operating connections from said counterbalance to the tone arm.

6. In the construction set out in the last claim foregoing, the amplifier being extended from its smaller end in the space behind the upper part of the record carrier and behind said counterbalance.

7. In the construction set out in claim 5, foregoing, the counterbalance comprising a lever having its fulcrum supported on the record carrier bearing, and extending upwardly from said fulcrum in the space behind the record carrier, and carrying a counter-balancing weight at its upper end.

S. In the construction set out in the last claim foregoing, the tone arm having a lever arm, and a link connecting said lever arm with the counter-balance lever, the length of said tone arm lever arm from the axis of the tone arm to the link pivot being the same as the distance of the other link pivot from the fulcrum of the counter-balance lever arm, and the length of the link being such that the divergences from vertical position of the tone arm and of the counterbalance arm are the same throughout the range of playing positions of the tone arm.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Chicago, Illinois, this 28th day of July, 1917.

CHARLES S. BURTON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

